Coca-Cola Amatil’s group managing director, Terry Davis, has joined a line-up of high-profile speakers set to address Australian supply chain event, Smart Conference 2011.
Davis, who has held his CCA role since 2001, says there are impediments to effective supply chains in Australia.
“Modern, efficient infrastructure has always been an issue in a country as large as Australia, which has traditionally been impeded by varying state regulations and lack of government taxation incentives for companies to ‘early invest’ in new wave technology applications in materials, handling and distribution,” he says.
Davis says the development and refinement of an effective and efficient supply chain has been a crucial part of CCA’s strong and consistent profit performance.
“Project Zero, CCA’s major supply chain investment vehicle across the group (Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, PNG and Fiji) has contributed to earnings through efficiency and service gains, cost reduction and an increase in manufacturing and distribution capabilities,” he says.
“In fact, cost savings from Project Zero have delivered close to 30% of CCA Australia’s earnings growth in the past 12 months.”
Under Project Zero CCA has invested in a complete order-to-cash technology platform rollout; a series of integrated automated warehouses; automation of manufacturing processes; and automated guided vehicles in its distribution facilities.
At Smart Conference 2011, Davis will also detail CCA’s major successful supply chain investment – PET bottle self-manufacture.
“The largest capital project CCA will undertake in the next five years will be the rollout of the self-manufacture of PET bottles across all our major manufacturing operations,” Davis says.
“By 2015 CCA will invest approximately $450 million in this project. By manufacturing bottles in-house, CCA will produce bottles with at least 15% less PET resin content. In addition there are significant freight savings from not transporting empty bottles around the country, which, when combined with using less raw materials, delivers not only a real cost benefit to our business, but a sustainability benefit as well.”
Smart Conference will be held on May 25 and 26, 2011, at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre, Darling Harbour.